B'opping Atlanta

I just returned from spending a long weekend visiting my mom and sister in Atlanta. Regardless of where you are (no offense to Atlanta), it's hard to beat quality time with family.

First, let me explain the term b'opping. If you haven't already figured it out, this is an apostrophized word combo of bar and hopping, newly-coined by my sister Lauren and her boyfriend Brian (I'm sure they will both claim to be the brain-child of this term, and I'll let them fight over it). It is an official method of experiencing a city via the finest local establishments, and has become a tradition associated with any gathering of 2 or more members of my family in the same city. We've b'opped Seattle, we've b'opped New Orleans. I'm sure you will hear me reference this term often, so become familiar.

So we continue. Lauren recently moved to the Virginia-Highlands area of Atlanta, and we spent quite a bit of time b'opping around her new 'hood. Friday night, we b'opped into Pozole Neuvo Latino y Tequila Bar. The atmosphere was lively and loud: the good kind of Friday-night loud and rowdy where you can tell people are on a mission to drink their week away. My husband Jeff being no exception, Patron Silver shots with Mexican beer chasers for the boys, despite Pozole's extensive tequila menu. Can't blame him - if it ain't broke, don't fix it. For the ladies, a tall carafe of red sangria, with a paint-stirrer stirrer that was excellent for preventing too much ice from falling into your glass, like a tongue-depressor. I LOVED this sangria - taste, presentation, the whole thing. It was the perfect proportions of wine, brandy and citrus - not too milky as some sangria can be from too much juice.

Set with drinks and seated quicker than expected with 6 on a busy night, we ordered and quickly devoured their chips and salsa trio including pineapple salsa. Yum. For main dishes, I believe I was the only one at the table who did not order some combination of their choice-of-two taco plate. Rave reviews on the slow-roasted pork and braised beef from the gallery. I opted for the special, a chile relleno stuffed with ground beef & spicy goodness, grilled and topped with queso fresco and tomatillos, sided with black beans and Mexican rice. Heaven in my mouth. This dish was EXCELLENT and made me want to work on mastering the art of the chile relleno myself. I was only disappointed with how fast we were seated and served so that the experience didn't last longer. As it goes with b'opping, off we were to the next place...

This was a great stop on our b'opping Atlanta tour, and I have to admit, just one example of how Atlanta grows on me with each visit.